200 Blood of the Beas

Xiao Qi gritted teeth. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at Chu Li. "Since King An harbors an ambition to take the throne, he'll never marry my Second Sister. But because the Emperor had personally promised the engagement with our Public House, he could not do anything but adhere to it. Therefore, his best way out of this mess is to kill my Second Sister. Am I right?"

Chu Li sighed and nodded his head.

Xiao Qi asked again, "Does he have the intention to kill my Second Sister?"

Chu Li did not speak.

Xiao Qi gritted her teeth again. Then, she scoffed, "So it seems like the Ren Public House has aligned themselves with King An's forces!"

If King An really wanted to be Emperor, he would do everything he could to void the engagement.

Xiao Qi may not be a master strategist, but her analytical skills were remarkable. She could have everything figured out in just a blink of an eye.

"Hmph, King An. He would destroy anyone who stands in his way, am I right?" Xiao Qi asked.

Chu Li replied, "Yes, King An's cruel at heart."

"It seems to be that we cannot allow my Second Sister into the Imperial Court." Xiao Qi shook her head. "There's no other way for my Second Sister and I. We can only get out of this by faking our deaths."

Chu Li shook his head and replied, "What if the Emperor insists that the Second Lady must marry King An?"

"The Emperor?" Xiao Qi frowned.

She had forgotten to account for the Emperor's thoughts.

Chu Li chided her, "If the Emperor issues an order that the Second Lady must marry into the Imperial Court, will faking your deaths help? Aunt Xiao Yueling had already attempted this trick long ago."

Xiao Qi was lost for words.

Chu Li said, "Lady Xiao, actually there's another way."

"What way?" Xiao Qi lifted her head up to look at him.

Chu Li found it difficult to say out the three words, "Kill King An!"

Xiao Qi's gaze froze. She frowned and looked at him with her bright eyes twinkling.

She looked exceptionally calm, but deep down, her emotions were unsettled.

Chu Li watched her quietly as he waited for her to respond.

This decision was indeed very startling. It may not sound crazy to Chu Li because he had a modern-world mindset. The modern people respected authority, but not the son of the heaven. Hence, only he could come out with such an outrageous idea.

However, for the people in this world, it would be hard for them to think this way.

After a while, Chu Li continued to speak, "Just so you know, he cursed the Second Lady with the Vitality Sealing Finger, so he very much deserves to die. I don't care if he's a prince! Besides, 'till this day, the Second Lady's still very much alive so he won't rest his case. Even if you faked your deaths, he'll still find a way to make sure that the Second Lady is truly dead."

Xiao Qi sighed.

Chu Li said, "The road to the crown is a treacherous one. He can't afford to expose a single weakness. Even if he decides to let go of the Second Lady, will the other High Dukes let go of her too? Lady, we can't keep playing defense anymore, we must cut the problem at its roots!"

"Do you think killing King An is that easy?!" Xiao Qi sneered, "If the Emperor knows about it, we won't live!"

Once the secret plot to assassinate King An was leaked, the Emperor may not be able to dissolve the whole Public House. Though, he could easily send someone to kill Xiao Tieying, Xiao Qi, and Xiao Shi. With the power of the Imperial Court, the Emperor could wipe out the Xiao family effortlessly.

"Which is why we must keep this under the radar." Chu Li said, "We must act before King An takes his move. Because if he strikes first, it would then be obvious to the people that we killed him."

"You're a true daredevil!" Xiao Qi rolled her eyes at him.

Chu Li waved his hand. "He forced my hand. If he had mercy on the Second Lady, we would not need to risk our lives like this!"

"Don't tell my Big Brother about this." Xiao Qi pulled a straight face and told him, "Xiao Tieying is too honest. He would give it away."

Chu Li nodded in agreement.

He sighed. Master Xiao Tieying had always been too honest in his ways. Truth be told, this character of his made him unfit for the job of a High Duke. The declination of the Public House all these years was directly related to the way he had handled matters.

However, one could not put all the blame on him. It was the previous High Duke of Xiao who did not pass down all the doctrines and principles of governance to him. Hence, he did not inherit any good leadership qualities. Although Xiao Tieying knew of all the evils in the world, he chose to adhere to his principles and deal with things in an honest manner. He was never a man who favored using deception or political trickeries.

A High Duke like him may not be the best, but he was certainly one worth pledging your loyalty to. All these years, the Public House had been slumping, but he managed to keep things together. The Public House did not collapse completely solely because all the people remained supportive of his reign.

If he knew of King An's wicked ambitions, he would most certainly reveal his hostility towards him when they both met. That would only make matters worse because if King An's suspicion was raised, their plot would be foiled.

Xiao Qi turned away and continued to gaze at the vast lake. She sighed.

At times, there were things which could not be helped in this world, and circumstances had forced them out of their comfort zones. She knew how dangerous it was to attempt to assassinate King An. If they slip, even by the tiniest step, they would be plunged into a bottomless grave.

She finally made up her mind and regained her enthusiasm. She asked, "So, what idea do you have in mind?"

Chu Li said, "At the time being, I can't come up with a viable solution. He's a Grandmaster, so poisoning him won't work. I can only go up against him with my raw strength. But unfortunately, I'm not a Grandmaster myself."

"Grandmaster..." Xiao Qi frowned.

Chu Li's Light-body Technique was out of this world, and his stealth would help with the assassination. Though it was too bad that he had yet achieved the domain of a Grandmaster, so it would be difficult for him to kill King An.

It was an almost impossible task to assassinate a Grandmaster because a Grandmaster would be able to sense any slightest signs of danger. The only way one could succeed was to have stronger martial arts than the target himself and give it your all.

Based on what he knew, the martial arts teachings of the Imperial Court were extremely obscure and mysterious. Several princes had unimaginable levels of martial arts. The proof being their successful achievement of breaking into the Grandmaster's boundary. Even Zhao Qingshan was not able to beat King An.

Chu Li questioned, "What heart technique does King An possess?"

"I think it's the Duality Scripture."

"Duality Scripture?" Chu Li furrowed his brow and gave it a good thought. Anyhow, all the books in his mind palace did not have any records of it, not even a single mention.

"It's a secret technique that has been passed down in his family." Xiao Qi shook her head. "It was said that their ancestor, the First Emperor of the Ji dynasty had a strange encounter when he was young. After he saved a spirit beast, he obtained the Duality Scripture from it. That is also how he started the conquest to expand his empire."

"Don't tell me that this folklore is real?" Chu Li smiled.

"Most if not all of it is real!" Xiao Qi said. "If not for the spirit beast, the Duality Scripture wouldn't be as magical as it is. The First Emperor was not a prominent figure in his earlier days, but within a few years, he had stunning improvements which shocked everyone else. On second thoughts, you do remind me of the First Emperor's marvelous achievements back in his days, Chu Li!"

Chu Li was quick to wave his hand and denied her statement. "No, please don't say that!"

Xiao Qi knowingly stopped, then said, "The Duality Scripture is very powerful. If not, he wouldn't be able to break through the boundaries of an Enlightened Master."

Chu Li hummed. "Lady, have you ever heard of the Talismanic Arts?"

"Yes, Talismanic Arts from the Green Deer Cliff," Xiao Qi replied. "The Talismanic Arts is a famed craftsmanship skill passed down from one generation to another at the Green Deer Cliff. They would cultivate using their unique heart technique and lace their crafts with cinnabar, making them into talismans with specific powers and abilities. But they kept the craftsmanship skills to themselves, and never taught it to the outside world.

"Were there any remarkably powerful talismans?" Chu Li asked, "Like, one which could help with cultivation?"

"The likes of Tranquility Talisman and Serenity Talisman would help in cultivation," Xiao Qi replied to him casually. "But crafting talismans were really unpopular. Just think of it, making a talisman needs a calm state of mind and it requires help from God to make it happen. You can only finish up the inscription with a stroke of divine intervention. Even by spending from ten days to half a month's time in crafting one, success will not be guaranteed. And when you want to use the talisman, it can only last for a brief while. So what's the use of it?"

Chu Li seemed like he was deep in thought.

"An outsider might think that it's mysterious and very powerful, but my aunt used to be one of their disciples so I know exactly what they do inside Green Deer Cliff. In truth, the talismans were only used to frighten people. Besides, only their own disciples can summon the powers of the talismans, because it requires the unique heart techniques of Green Deer Cliff to be activated. There are now fewer and fewer folks in Green Deer Cliff who would learn this technique, so it's dangerously close to extinction."

"Is there a kind of talisman which is ever present and won't dissipate after its usage?"

"I don't think so?" Xiao Qi gave it a thought, then shook her head. "Unless you use a spirit beast's blood. If not, the talisman would dissipate very quickly."

"Spirit beast's blood..." Chu Li was struck with a realization.

Xiao Qi stared at him. "Chu Li, don't tell me you've seen a long-lasting talisman before?"

"I've seen one in King An's Imperial Court." Chu Li grinned. "An ancient tripod cauldron. It's said that it could help with cultivation. I've always wondered how it would have such powers. Turns out that it was made from a spirit beast's blood!"

"I believe it's the Nine Dragons' Tripod Cauldron 1 that you're talking about," Xiao Qi said. "Each Imperial Court has one. And it can indeed accelerate one's cultivation."

"Many people knew about this?"

"People in the Imperial Court and Public House knew." Xiao Qi said, "Don't even think about it. The artifact was connected to the Duality Scripture. The Emperor can feel it if somebody moves it from its location. Nobody can steal it!"

Suddenly, Chu Li was shocked. His expressions changed.

"What is it?" Xiao Qi hurriedly asked.

Chu Li said, "Lady, what kind of abilities does an Enlightened Master have? If King An was murdered, could the Emperor feel it?"

Xiao Qi's expressions changed too. The Nine Tripod Cauldrons (Chinese: 九鼎; pinyin: Jiǔ Dǐng) were ancient Chinese ritual cauldrons, which symbolize the power and authority of the ruling dynasty. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine_Tripod_Cauldrons